Four times Percy and Annabeth wake up in the same bed
by goldenlanterns
Summary: (Percabeth)
1. Injury

**_Hiya! Obviously, I'm not Rick Riordan or this would be written much better._** ** _The first one-shot is slightly AU because they're still at camp three months after starting to date but character analyis is what I was going for anyway :P_**

 ** _Tell me what you think!_** ** _-x-_**

 ** _One:_**

Sleeping Annabeth was beautiful. Even under the worst circumstances. The clench of her jaw, the press of her lips in disapproval, the constant furrow between her two blond eyebrows, all disappeared. Of course, the stunning and fierce gray eyes were lost to a child like calmness, oblivious to my worry. It was easier to stare at her when she was sleeping, without the fear of be smarted off or not-so-playfully slapped. She wouldn't be condescending or blunt or superior, she would just sleep in silence and peace like a princess waiting for a kiss. Most of the time, I would've been more than happy to give it to her, but with her passed out in a infirmary bed, I didn't think it appropriate.

Some kind of Cyclops had caught her outside of Camp Half-Blood's magical boundaries and gotten one too many slashes in for my liking. One was enough but she was lying there with twelve different areas of broken skin. I had counted in my complete panic. Her legs and arms were the worst but there was also a bloody cut on her shoulder that Will had drenched in gauze, not to mention the now strangely crispy looking blood on her temple.

She was still so heart-breakingly pretty that something swelled in my chest that I recognized immediately, possessiveness. It wasn't like I never got jealous but I wasn't exactly opening trusting every demigod or mortal male that spoke, smiled or even looked at her. But once in awhile, protection turned to greed and I felt myself thinking that Annabeth was mine, all mine and only mine, which simply wasn't true. I knew she cared about a lot of other things and people besides me, her father, her dreams and her work, Athena, Thalia, and in spite of everything, Luke.

Even if it was a false idea, I couldn't help looking at her and thinking, _Mine. My Annabeth. Please be okay._

Will suggested I go home since Annabeth was probably going to sleep a good long while and be fine in the morning. Despite halfhearted attempts from him and Chiron to get me to go back to my cabin, I refused, pulling up a chair next to the bed and plopping down stubbornly. Everyone cleared out quickly and didn't say anything. Annabeth and I had shared many occasions of seeing each other badly injured and apparently the entire camp was starting to understand and gave us privacy.

It was somewhere near four in the morning and I wished I had the heart to sleep. But if she woke, I was going to be there. I felt all of my muscles go numb, my stomach start to ache for food, thunder pounding my brain and my eyelids starting to sting. But they didn't fall. They were held open. I was going to be so jacked up later.

And then I realized Annabeth was scowling in her sleep, the tell-tale sign of her coming out of slumber. I sat over her, trying with my thumb to smooth the confusion in her brow.

Her eyes snapped opened and she seized my wrist with a tight grip, "Percy." But not like, _Oh hello_. More along the lines of, _What in Hades is wrong with you?_

"Hey." I gasped at the sudden adrenaline.

Instantly, she let me go and her eyelids fell tiredly, "I was dreaming." Not like a statement, but a question.

"Yeah." I said, "Do you feel alright?"

Her exhausted silence was her answer and she pulled herself a few inches to one side of the bed, nodding her head but wincing as she pulled up the covers again.

I knew what she wanted without her saying it. I would've checked, so make sure she wasn't uncomfortable, but she was so tired she probably wouldn't even be able to process my words. So I gingerly stood up, stretching the pain out of my back and crawling on the bed beside her.

She curled up next to me on my back like this was a comfort zone we had already accomplished, like we hadn't just started dating three months ago.

I hesitantly reached to the round of her shoulder, rubbing one of the few places that she looked uninjured.

Her eyes were completely closed but she managed to breath on my shoulder, "Just tired." She assured me with the last bits of her consciousness. Even stoned with mortal and divine drugs, she could still read me so easily.

I kissed her hair even though I knew she was already out, "Good night."

And somehow, after that, I fell asleep too.

What felt like seconds later, I was being poked in the cheek, "Hey, wake up."

"What?" I grumbled intelligently.

"It's ten o'clock Percy." Annabeth informed me, sounding surprisingly unfazed.

I rubbed my eyes and started to stretch but then I remembered how low on space we both were, "Um. Hey." I tried not to sound confused or uncomfortable but my voice betrayed me.

To my shock, she beamed, "This is a good way to wake up, isn't it?"

"Yeah. . ." I admitted dreamily, staring at her eyes and lips and temple, wait a second--"No. This is terrible, your wounded. It's awful looking."

Annabeth touched her thumb to just under my eye and smoothed the probably gigantic dark circles, "Don't worry about stuff that's not important."

"Are you high?" I demanded, pulling away, "You're important to me! I won't have you, running around and getting hurt like this! I was worried like crazy Annabeth! What happened? Why did you let him do this?"

She sighed, "I had just stopped a spar with Malcolm, I was tired and I hadn't eaten breakfast, okay? It looks worse than it is, I promise."

I couldn't help the frown that came to my face, "But Will was fixing you up for half an hour. And I stayed up until four in the morning."

"Oh Percy." Annabeth said softly. She held both of my cheeks, "I know you're worried and it's really sweet but I'm going to be fine." She paused to lean forward and kiss me, "Okay?"

I took a deep breath and agreed, "Okay."

"You know, between all of the drugs, I don't think we really snuggled all that much." She wiggled her arms around my torso and gave me a mischievous smile.

"Since when does the daughter of Athena snuggle?" I asked.

"Oh shut up and hold me Seaweed Brain."

But before I had the chance, Will shouted, "Gods Almighty, it doesn't end with you two, does it?"

Both of us froze but I wasn't surprised someone found us. The entire camp was conspiring against us these days and most of the time, they were winning. The Stolls had caught us in our first make out session last month which resulted in punishments and chores and a good talking to. I was still kind of sore at them for it.

"This is an _in-fir-mar-y,_ " He snapped, "Not a private bedroom! Percy, out!"

"But--"

"Out!"

I snuck a kiss to Annabeth's cheek and pulled myself up, utterly exhausted, and headed for the door, "I'm sure your dad wouldn't mind a little romance in his house." I reasoned to Will.

Annabeth burst out laughing and Will's jaw dropped as I just grinned at him stupidly.

He shook his head, "You're an idiot."

I beamed at the ceiling in good nature, "Runs in the family, right Lord Dad?"

The earth shook with a bemused laugh and Will sent a couple of fake slaps in my direction, herding me out the door before I could insult anymore divine beings.


	2. Fight

**_Hi again!_** ** _I have no idea if the fight turned out okay--not used to Annabeth POV--but let me know! Oh and, curse warning._** ** _-x-_** ** _Two:_**

I knew were going to fight before we even started talking. I always got back from school later than Percy and headed straight for his place, despite knowing he wasn't going to be much help with the studying I had to do for a test this Monday.

It was Friday evening and I was stressed to my wit's end before I even knocked on the door. I was praying for his goofiness and easy demeanor to calm me down but instead I got an equally stressed version of Percy.

He opened the apartment door with half of a smile, "Hey."

I tried for one too, "Hey. Rough day?"

"Like you wouldn't believe. You?"

I nodded and stepped inside, "I'll be back." I headed down the hall for the bathroom, hearing him fall onto the couch, going back to some TV show. While I washed my hands, I swore to myself to go easy on Percy. He was always there to comfort my anxiety and I needed to start being there for his instead of snapping his head off.

I took one of my school books and paper out of my backpack then dropped the bag in the guest room that everyone acted like was mine. I suppose it was technically, I usually spent weekend nights there. Besides, I spent more time at the Jackson-Blofis apartment than my school dormitory.

I took my school notes and started transferring them to index cards, sitting in the arm chair. Even if I didn't use the flash cards, which I would, believe me, the physical and mental coordination used to write and think would be implanted to my subconsciousness, therefore assisting my test taking skills.

Sally started cooking a while later, suggesting breakfast for dinner which everyone agreed to. She was humming a Stevie Wonder song while making cooking eggs, bacon and pancakes at the same time look easy.

By the time she was done, I had gone through my chemistry note cards three times with complete accuracy and decided that called for a break.

Percy and his mom were discussing music and a much needed vacation when he said he was thinking about applying for a job.

I dropped my fork onto my plate with a clatter, "What?" Something swelled up, something like annoyance, something like anger.

"Oh that sounds wonderful!" Sally exclaimed, beaming proudly, "Where are you thinking of?"

"Well there's a pet store near the school," Percy explained, glancing at Paul, who nodded in affirmation, "And I asked the lady if they needed any extra help and she said yes, but only with the fish and aquariums because apparently," He grinned slightly, "Everyone thinks fish are boring."

They laughed. I didn't.

"And I would only be able to work certain hours on Saturdays and Sundays because of child labor laws or whatever so I think it would actually be pretty nice."

I felt like I had been stabbed. Didn't he know we were already kept apart enough with school? Didn't he know Sundays were our days? In my opinion, I had been very patient with our schedules and working around them but this was it, I couldn't take it.

"I don't think you should." I spoke up, trying to keep my voice even.

"Why not?" Percy questioned, frowning.

"We already have too much school as it is, why would you want to add one more responsibility?"

Sally and Paul looked mildly confused but Percy was different. He was reading me, I could tell, watching me with slightly hurt eyes, trying to dig up the answer to my somewhat rude statement of opinion. I looked down and messed with my hands under the table.

"That's true." Sally said gently, always clearing the foggy hurt air, "It _is_ a big responsibility but I believe you could do it if you really tried. Now. Who wants cheesecake?"

After dinner, Sally and Paul went to continue writing her novel and grade school papers respectively, leaving me to explain myself to Percy. It's not that I was obligated to, he just seemed confused and I wanted him to understand.

"It's not that I don't think you could do it." I started when he muted the commercials on the TV.

"Hum?" He said absently.

"The job. I think you could but that doesn't mean I think you should." I wanted to get up from the arm chair and go hold his hand or something but I figured then he would know how greedy I felt of him and get agitated.

"Well why not?" The hurt was leaving his voice and anger was replacing it.

"I'm just trying to be the voice of reason here." I clarified.

"Mom didn't seem opposed." He mumbled.

"Your mom thinks you deserve a metal for just breathing." I said dismissively.

Then he looked taken back, clenching his jaw, "Well breathing is pretty hard when your a child of the Big Three."

 _A_ _child of the Big Three_. Like he was somehow better than me because his father was born before my mother.

"Well maybe if Athena had been around, Poseidon wouldn't have gotten his stupid ass eaten." I smarted back. I felt the apartment rumble with a second of an earthquake but I didn't care.

For a moment, he seemed worried, readying to kiss my cheek and rub my shoulders. And then fire lit up in his eyes, "What the heck is your problem lately?"

For some reason, the fire made me even more angry, "My problem? Right. Because I'm the one trotting around, pretending everything is find and dandy while I continuously fail all of my classes!" I said sarcastically, now sitting rigidly straight.

"Well we can't all be a smart ass like you, can we?" He responded sharply.

I stood up, fists by my sides, "Oh yeah, a smart ass! Right! Because I haven't spent the last _two hours_ sitting here, desperately studying for a test!"

He didn't get up from the couch which fueled my anger even more, " _I'm sorry,_ but I'm not as desperate to impress everyone!" He snapped.

"This isn't for everyone! Good gods Percy, it's for me! So I can have a better life later!"

"Well so is my job." He reasoned coldly.

"You aren't even listening!"

"You would know about not listening!" He ran his hand in his hair, finally yelling in response, "Jesus Christ Annabeth! I wanted to get a job so I could go to college, so I could help my mom retire! I'm doing what's right, I'm doing what I'm supposed to do, take care of my family!"

Sally and Paul had gone dead silent in the other room but I couldn't find it in myself to care.

"You won't get a good job without school! It won't matter if you have the money because every college in the damn country will think you're an idiot!"

He flinched but stood up and shook his head, "I wouldn't expect you to understand, you've had everything handed to you."

I screamed in refusal, "I ran away when I was seven years old Perseus Jackson! _Seven_! Preach to me about family!!"

He walked straight past me to his room, "I don't have to listen to this." And he slammed the door. Then I realized I was crying.

I don't really know how long I stayed there, betrayed and confused. But Sally came to the living room with an apologetic look on her face.

"Honey, you should go to sleep. It's almost midnight." She suggested gently, touching my hair.

 _Why couldn't she have been_ my _mother?_ I demanded to the Fates. She loved so easily and openly. Of all of the things Percy had, his mother was by far the most precious. How could he complain when he had people that truly loved him?

I nodded and went to the guest room, shoved my papers and books off the bed and sunk under the covers. Sally sat on the side and offered to tell me a story.

I nodded and tried not to lose control and cry again. That's what Percy would suggest after bad dreams, a story.

"A long time ago, I was with a man named Gabe." I nodded again and she sighed with relief, glad she didn't have to explain to me how awful he was, "And we had this teeny tiny little apartment. I'm still convinced Percy's bedroom was actually a hall closet but anyway. So along with all of Gabe's wonderful personality traits, he liked to gamble away our apartment rent. The building owner gave us every warning and chance but once five months of not paying rolled around, he understandably said we had to get out." She was speaking with a low, hushed voice like she had never spoken the words out loud before, "And so Percy and I had to go to a shelter."

Everything suddenly clicked into place, especially Percy's angry words about doing right by his mom by getting a job. It wasn't about the responsibility, it was about the money. How could I have been so stupid?

Sally nodded like she could see the explanation come to focus in my eyes, "It sounds worse than it was really. New York has special places for mothers and children so it wasn't difficult to find a place to stay. But Gabe didn't come with us, he stayed in the apartment for three days and we in the shelter for three days, until the landlord came to change the locks and found Gabe, probably drunk, watching TV.

"There was some sort of confrontation between them and the landlord found out about the gambling and that I didn't have a family to go to. So he called all of the shelters and somehow tracked us down, saying our debt was no longer owed and our rent would be a quarter of what it was.

"And so we got by. But it didn't change the way Percy looked at Gabe, especially when he gambled, right there on the kitchen table. The shelter and Gabe I could deal with, but those three days did something Percy that hasn't ever gone back to normal. He still gets the same panic in his eyes when he sees bills on the counter or anyone talks about money, like he's ready for me to ask him to pack his things again." She sighed.

"And I can't help but feel like I shouldn't have let an eight year old ever think about money or shelters or gambling, it made him grow up too soon."

"That's obviously not your fault." I told her.

She nodded hesitantly, "Yes, I suppose. But I knew his life was going to be difficult enough without . . . Well." She took a breath, "I'm sorry dear, I know this is all very unnecessarily depressing."

I shook my head, "Depressing, but necessary."

Sally smiled gratefully, touching my cheek, "Get some sleep dear, everything will be okay in the morning."

For the first time, I realized, maybe Sally _was_ my mother, "Thank you, good night."

"Good night." And Sally Jackson kissed my forehead.

It took me a long time to get to sleep and once I did, not very long to wake up. I was having a dream that I was very small, everything was larger than me, everything was terrifying. Everything smelled distinctly and shockingly like stale bread. Beer. I was sitting in a closet and Sally was crying, somewhere I couldn't see and someone, a man, was yelling. I wasn't supposed to go to her, I had been ordered to stay where I was.

 _Leave her alone!_ I felt the sudden urge to scream, _Don't touch my mom!_

But I was little, I was small, so I was silent.

I woke with a start, stumbling out of bed and to Percy's room, not hesitating at the closed door.

I stood one step into his room, staring at his peaceful, sleeping face, a pool of drool on the pillow. I noticed a small picture on his bed that he must have been holding when he fell asleep. It was from our first year at camp after the quest, when he managed to get a disposable camera off of the Stolls black market, snapping pictures because he had to show his mom. The one on the bed was of Percy beaming like a nut case while I was behind him, sticking out my tongue.

In the moment, I thought I looked like I didn't really care(why should I care about the funny, cute boy taking pictures of me to show his mother?), but looking at it now, I looked like a playful dork. Not as much as Percy did, but still.

I set the picture carefully on his nightstand and watched him for a moment. He never talked much about his life before camp, just that Smelly Gabe and school sucked. Now I know why he never told me more.

Very gingerly, I crawled onto his bed and pulled the covers over both of us.

Shortly after listening to the pattern of his breathing and distant sirens outside of the window, I fell back asleep with the whisper of an apology.

We woke at the same time when Sally knocked on the open door loudly, "Good morning!" She greeted us brightly, obviously happy to see me cuddled against his back, "Breakfast is on the table, if you sleepyheads want it."

Percy tried to roll towards her, grumbling, but instead was met with a probably uncomfortable amount of me. Our legs were now slightly knotted and he was half way on me, twisting his neck in an unnatural way to look at my face, "Um. Good morning?"

I couldn't help my smiling, knowing that everything was going to be fine. An apology was in order on both of our parts but we didn't have to worry about that now.

I kissed his cheek, "Good morning." And he smiled like the sun.


	3. Nightmare

**_More people like this than I thought they would, dang xP_** ** _(Post Tartarus, Annabeth's POV. I'm not good at angst ovvbioouslly lol)_** ** _-x-_** ** _Three:_**

The nightmares were regular now. Almost a schedule if I was honest. Of everything I planned and scheduled, I didn't want nightmares to be one of them. I didn't want to except that as a part of my life.

But they were.

It wasn't even solely terrors from Tartarus anymore, now I dreamed about Luke and Silena and my mother. Everything felt like acid, everything seared with pain.

Before Percy went missing, he would lay his head in my lap and try to distract me from my Olympus rebuilding efforts with a couple of sweet words and tugs of my hair. I might as well admit, it usually worked. Besides sparring and a good few heated make out sessions(Which I had to start all of them mind you. Percy, oblivious until the end), all of our physical contact was sweet. Like, sappy forehead touching and stuff that made everyone sigh. And not just the Aphrodite siblings. All of it was the right amount of natural and genuine, with the best kind of stupid mixed in.

And those moments were all but dead.

There was a new kind of desperation we had for each other after the second war. Not a lust or jealousy. Companionship wasn't strong enough of a word. It was something, something that made me feel like I had lost him even when he was squeezing my hand. It was nostalgia for him when he was still here.

Then again, maybe he wasn't.

He usually talked or thrashed in his sleep during a nightmare but he had somehow trained himself not to, so he wouldn't wake me. I hated him for it, knowing he was suffering alone when he comforted me every time I woke him. I told him time and again to wake me, and he did, but only sometimes.

I knew he was holding back, trying to be strong for me but it was only making things worse. I was wrecked with guilt and all the life had been sucked from his eyes. The more I reached out to comfort him, the more he recoiled. So I stopped trying.

Something was absent from the way we looked at each other. I used to feel like a grinning, blushing imbecile but now I just felt like another piece of my heart was crumbling. I felt dead.

The only proper emotion that I felt lately was shame. Not for spending every night in Percy's room, not for slacking off and usually skipping every single one of my classes, not even for crying so publicly when something even remotely reminded me of Luke or Thalia or the days when my only worry was getting Percy to like me.

All of my shame was directed at Sally Jackson. The woman might as well have gone to hell with us because she was living it now.

She cooked, cleaned, dried our tears, completely stopped all work on her novel and told our teachers that we were going to try harder at every parent-teacher conference even if she knew it wasn't true. She was a saint really, I didn't know how she hadn't been hired on the spot at anywhere. Maybe because she was always home, worried sick about her son and his girlfriend as they made the slow descent to madness.

Nico di Angelo started to show up at the apartment somewhere along the lines, sitting at Percy's rarely used desk and telling stories about his time in Tartarus. He never expected anything from Percy or me, he made that clear. He wanted us to know it was okay to feel terrible. He suggested his antidepressants to all three of us, Percy, Sally and me. He said they sobered you up long enough to sort things out.

I didn't know what was real anymore between the dreams and hell and the way Percy's eyes no longer looked green. So we all agreed. Because as messed up as I felt, I remembered being good, I remembered happiness. And I still wanted it.

Two days after the antidepressants was the first time Percy and I had been out of the house in months.

It was to marvel at the rain.

The medication didn't make everything magically disappear, but like Nico said, it helped you think clearly for the majority of the time. Our school picked up and we started talking with our friends again, slowly easing back into the world. It wasn't fixed completely, maybe it never would be, but it was better now.

The mischievous gleam in Percy's eyes were back and I felt the determination reappear in mine. Everything was good and normal and okay again.

Until Percy woke me in the middle of the night with his tears.

He was shaking the bed and the vibrations woke me, always a light sleeper. He tried to stop once he realized I was awake but it didn't do any good.

I wrapped my arms around his chest and he hugged me back tightly, so much so that I was drawing short breaths but it didn't bother me. My heart hurt for him.

"I should have pulled you up." He croaked.

I yanked away and sat up, leaving his hands out wide, missing my back. I spoke to him with an urgent demand, "Don't you _ever_ feel guilty for that. I swear, if you feel guilty for anything, I'll kill you." I wiped my watery eyes with the back of my hand, "Do you hear me??" I snapped, " _I'll kill you._ "

He took a long breath and sniffled, "Okay." He gave me half of a smile, his cheeks shining with city lights.

I took his hands and wrapped them around me, falling back into his embrace, sighing, "Good. Because I love you and if I had to fall, I'm glad you were there."

He breathed a moment without saying anything. He didn't have to tell me he felt the same, I could read even his silence. After a few minutes of hugging, I moved back to the bed again but never let go.

Now calm, Percy whispered solemnly, "I don't think I'll ever tell someone to go to hell ever again."

I couldn't help the laugh that came out, shooing away the silence, "Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase."

He kissed me softly with the remnants of a smile, "Good night."

I kissed him too, a second time for good measure, "Sweet dreams Percy."


	4. Wellll

**_Thanks for the love guys, it means a ton! This'll be the last chapter but if you need more Percabeth, I've got more stories posted over on my profile that I try to keep as canonically true as possible._** ** _(Who am I kidding? My fatal flaw is probably pride too after that ovbious self-promo... But I digress)_** ** _This one-shot is in the future, Percy's POV, sometime in New Rome maybe? Idk man . . . Curse warning!_** ** _Anyways, see ya!_** ** _-x-_** ** _Four:_**

I was screwed. And I meant that in the best possible, most literal way.

If I went back in time to when I met Annabeth, and told little me how I was waking up and how good and tired and screwed I felt, little Percy would have been terrified. Also confused. But mostly terrified.

I wondered if this is what it would always feel like after spending the night with Annabeth. The past two times had always resulted in a lot of kissing and grinning and enough fantasies to make my nightmares completely disappear for a while. Dear Lord Zeus, I hoped it would always be like this, I felt like I had won the lottery. Maybe I had. I was waking up next to the smartest, prettiest, bravest girl in the universe who somehow was more than okay with me stuttering some stupid crap while making love to her. I didn't think it got much better than that.

I found myself beaming at the ceiling like the dumb ass I was, but I couldn't make myself stop smiling.

Annabeth beside me was sleeping soundly on her bare chest, hair in complete disarray, sheets only covering half of her golden tan back. There was a bite mark on her shoulder that was going to stay longer than I realized it would when I made it. Then again, I wasn't really having any solid thoughts and my ADHD was going utterly looney last night.

Annabeth rolled awake, stretched, winced and then smiled stupidly at me, "Hi."

"Hi. Are you hurt?" She seemed completely fine when we went to sleep.

"Oh no, not like that." She smirked, "I think you underestimate yourself young hero, I'm sore solely because of _you._ " She poked me in the chest.

For a second, I just stared at her. Then, "Well I can check that off the bucket list."

She buried her face back into the pillow, her silent laughter shaking the bed, "You're a mess, you know that?" Annabeth told me endearingly, looking up but swallowing with difficulty. I recognized it instantly as dehydration, which I happened to be prepared for.

I grinned, "For sure." I reached over her shoulder for the water bottle on the nightstand but she seized my sides immediately, letting out a cute whine while kissing my neck.

I laughed a little, placing a hand to her back, but still grabbing the bottle and pulling back to give it to her, "This was on the nightstand."

She blushed, realizing her assumption but still smiling, "Right, sorry."

I smiled back as she took a big gulp of water, "That's okay."

Annabeth closed the cap, setting the water on my table again, and snuggled really close, nuzzling her nose and forehead to my collarbone. An uncontrollable content sigh came from my mouth and I felt her smile against my skin.

Gods, she was pretty. Pretty and completely naked, pressed against me shamelessly, all smoothed skin and toned muscles. She wasn't built like a wrestler, like a certain daughter of Ares I could mention, but more smooth, rounded. Softer somehow. But Gods help me, every time I realized how well defined her abs were or noticed the curve of her biceps, I could feel myself swooning. Was that a thing? Were guys allowed to swoon at their well built girlfriends? Even if we weren't, Annabeth was the exception. Because dear-Lord-Jesus-ever-loving-Christ. I felt like a ridiculous thirteen year old boy, mesmerized by boobs and hips and the feeling of having them against me. Jeesuus.

At that moment, I realized she had pulled back a fraction to meet my gaze and smirk at me. Probably because she'd gotten too good at reading my mind.

Without hesitation, I gently pulled her back and grumbled about being cold, when in fact, I was nothing of the sort. Quite the opposite actually.

"You know I can tell you feel horny, right?" She whispered, surprisingly not seductive, "You go all rigid and embarrassed."

 _Well shit._ There goes that. I felt myself tense and the blood rush to my head, only proving her point, "Right. Um."

She breathed a laugh to my neck, "But don't worry. I'm just better at hiding my moments."

And now she was flirting with me? I wondered if her statement counted as implying she got horny for me too. I thought it did. Maybe. I would have focused better without our limbs tangled together.

Annabeth had always been so confident and happy when we got like this, all stoned on hormones and adoration. She was so unpredictable and proud and just generally more smooth. Me? Well me, I was confused as hell. I ranted about her eyes and hair and skin and always managed to get her laughing by making a fool of myself. And like she said, be turned on and unable to hide it.

She smiled, "You think too much." I was going to have to talk to someone about this new found power, who knew Athena kids could read minds?

"I know we don't usually discuss this sort of thing but while I'm fueling your ego," Annabeth hugged me tighter, her voice sweet and deep with affection, "Percy Jackson, you're really good in bed."

It took me way longer to realize what she meant than it should have, considering I was already whipped by the smell of her hair. Then I started laughing, "I guess you've forgotten all of the blushing and hesitating and quoting Shakespeare."

She pretend to pout, "How many times do I have to tell you? It was _cute_. Its _still cute._ "

I just laughed, shaking my head.

"Well you're not going to convince me otherwise," She said with superiority, "You're hot and that's final."

"By not knowing what I'm doing?" I asked, feeling like I had no choice but to oppose her. There was a scenario the first time that resulted in a lot of apologies and confusion and me thinking I had injured her. That was a larger source of embarrassment, it ended up okay but my stomach still twisted with the memory.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, "Oh don't even try that with me, Seaweed Brain."

It was kind of stupid how hearing her use her nickname for me actually brightened my spirits again. There was nothing to be embarrassed for anyway.

She touched my cheeks with a hopeful smile, "Don't be dumb, okay? All I want is genuine, and that's all you do."

"Gees," I said, letting how I was touched make it's way to my voice, "You sound like you're trying to consul me for being deformed or something."

"Well that's only because you can't take _one_ stinkin' compliment!" Annabeth replied, rolling her eyes again in a way that meant she was more than fond of me.

"Says you, who's fatal flaw is pride." I pointed out.

She gasped, her shining eyes betraying her offended look, "Why . . ." She did her best _Peanuts_ impression, "Why I oughta slug you!"

For some reason, that was it. Annabeth quoting Lucy from the _Peanuts_ cartoons made me lean and kissed her. It was like eating a chip or a slice of chocolate cake, once you had one, you just couldn't stop.

She rolled on top of me but whined into my neck, "Gods, you're such a piece of work."

"Maybe," I wasn't going to let go of her hips as she peppered kisses on my jaw, "But I'm hot and genuine, or so I've been told."

She pulled back and beamed before pressing her lips firmly to mine, "You're gonna tease me about that, aren't you?" She seemed overjoyed with the idea.

"Relentlessly." I promised her.

"Fine," Annabeth complained in good nature, smiling slyly, "Let's just kiss then, if you're gonna be a smart ass."


End file.
